Bridge design not yet cleared, Metro races against time………Awapnil Rawal
Nine months ahead of the scheduled commissioning of the first Metro corridor, a feature that will take an estimated 10 months to build – the 183-metre-long steel bridge over the Andheri railway lines – is still waiting for its design to be cleared.
The initial deadline for the 11.4-km Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar corridor was July, but it was pushed back to the year-end; now, even that target looks difficult to meet.
The authorities have been seeking clearance for a year for the portion over and across the tracks at Andheri station. The designs had to be altered twice to suit the requirements of the Western Railway authorities.
The nodal agency, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), and the concessionaire, Mumbai Metro One Pvt Ltd (MMOPL), are both hoping that Western Railway will now clear the designs in a few days.
The clearance is now in the final stages. A lot of changes had to be done on the designs due to the proposed elevated corridor project of the Western Railway. Now we have started work on utilities for piers outside the railway premises. It will be cleared soon, said Ratnakar Gaikwad, metropolitan commissioner.
To save time, the MMOPL has started shifting of utilities on both the eastern and the western sides of the railway lines where the piers will be erected. Not willing to comment on the delays, a spokesperson for MMOPL said: Work on the Andheri Metro rail bridge is in progress. Utility investigation and shifting is being carried out for the construction of the side piers. Fabrication of the first span has commenced and the detailed design approval from the railway authorities is expected in a few days.
The construction of the cantilever bridge will be a challenging task for the concessionaire, since very little time will be allowed for working on the portion, once the final nod for the designs is given.
Officials said work can only be carried out on the railway premises for the two hours between 1.30 and 3.30 am, when no railway services are in operation. The steel bridge will be constructed from one side of the tracks to the other.
It is only when the construction over the tracks is being carried out that we will require service blocks. We do not see any difficulty in obtaining the blocks and will work in close coordination with the railway authorities, the spokesperson added. Of the 183-metre steel bridge, a 90-metre portion would be over railway lines.
Another cause for concern is right of way, which is still to be handed over by the MMRDA. According to the MMOPL, around 1.4 km of right of way, in patches, between Saki Naka and Ghatkopar remains to be handed over as the MMRDA is carrying out work on road widening and, in certain areas, permission from the traffic police is awaited.